Fresno airport opens room for nursing mothers on the go

Fresno Yosemite International Airport opened a new mothers room on Thursday, providing a private and comfortable space for mothers to breast-feed their babies or pump breast milk. The room is available to traveling moms waiting to board a flight or who have disembarked, as well as to working mothers.

Kevin Meikle, the city’s director of aviation, said the airport created the mothers room with the understanding that state laws will eventually require airports to provide such facilities. A law passed a year ago mandates that California airports with more than 1 million passenger departures each year provide a space for lactating mothers by January 2016. Smaller airports like Fresno will be required to offer a dedicated room when they undertake a major expansion or renovation of their terminals. Fresno Yosemite International reported more than 721,000 passengers boarded commercial flights last year.

“We seized the opportunity to support family-friendly amenities for passengers and employees while staying ahead of the curve on airport express room requirements,” Meikle said. “Without a major renovation project, we were able to provide this accommodation for traveling and working mothers.”

The mothers room is located just off the long hallway between the airport’s security screening and the boarding gates. It was carved out of an existing storage area. After new walls were built, the room was decorated with textured neutral wallpaper, carpeting, a comfy upholstered chair and footrest, power outlets, soft lighting and a granite countertop and sink.

The opening comes just weeks after leaders at Fresno City Hall announced that they would prepare a nursing room for mothers, converting a seldom-used room near the council chamber with the help of a $10,000 grant from First 5 Fresno County.

This story was originally published September 10, 2015 at 2:49 PM with the headline "Fresno airport opens room for nursing mothers on the go."